Improvement in horse hay-rakes



3. H. MEARS.

, Horse-Hay Rakes.

N0. 141,370, Patented'july29,1873.

Unrrnn STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN H. MEARS, OF' OSHKOSH, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF HIS RIGHT TO W. Gr. AND W. BARNES, OF FREEPORT, ILLINOIS.

IMPROVEMENT IN HORSE HAV-RAKES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 141,370, dated July 29, 1873; application filed April 26, 1873.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, JOHN H. MEARS, of Oshkosh, in the county of Winnebago and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in the Manufacture of Horse Hay-Rakes; and I do hereby declare that the followingis a full and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing making a part of this specification. Y

My 'invention relates to the construction of the rake-teeth and the mode of fastening or adjusting them to the rake-head, as hereinafter set forth. It relates, also, to the construction and use of certain castings, which are riveted to the sides of the frame supporting the stub-axle, and are provided with ears for supporting swinging arms, by which the rakehead may be raised or lowered, as hereinafter more fully set forth.

Havingthus briey stated the nature of my said improvements, I will now proceed to describe them in detail, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure l is a side elevation of my improved horse hay-rake, one of the draft-wheels being removed. Fig. 2 is a top view of the same, and Fig. 3 shows the mode of fastening and adj ustin g my improved rake-tooth in combination with a wide rake-head.

Similar letters of reference indicate correspending parts.

slotted plates d d may be secured in any de-.

sired position that the extent of the slots will admit of. It will easily be observedthat by this 'arrangement the diverging legs c c may be moved forward and backward relative to the rake-head with very little trouble, simply by loosening the nuts and adjustin g the sliding plates d df; and the weight of the seatbar, seat, and driver may accordingly be adjusted in such a manner as to poise evenly with the weight of the rake-head and teeth fastened thereto, so that, by very slight eXerrake-head D. These castings are securelyv riveted to the sides of the frame A, as shown in the drawing, and each of the side plates is provided with two uprights or ears, e and a, the former of which serves as a fulcruln for thc swinging arm E, while the latter, a, is provid-v ed with a series of holes, so arranged that each of said holes is equidistant from the swinging point at e, so that a corresponding hole in the swinging arm, in its movements with said arm,

will pass in succession all of these holes g g g,-

to either one of which it may be secured by means of bolts or pins f, in the usual manner, when the desired elevation of the rake-head has been reached. The rake-teeth h h 7L are curved in the manner shown in the drawing,

and are held in position by the bolts and f washers t', as indicated more plainly in Fig. 3.

These bolts pass up through the rake-head D and between the U -shaped curvature 7c, thereby allowing the teeth to be advanced or receded under the rake-head, as desired. The teeth are curved in such a manner that when they have exhausted the force of their tension at the upper return point m they will bear upon the rear lower edge of the rake-head at a, thus causing the strain of the tooth to be exerted upon that portion of the same which is in the rear of the rake-head. It will be readily observed that, by advancing the teeth under their respective bolts, their tension at the curvature may be increased. The wide rake-head also permits of the staples that are used to prevent a lateral motion being attached directly to the rake-head, as shown at Fig. 3. Theclearers p p p are held in position by bcing bolted to the cross-bar A, or passing through holes in the same, and then passing into suitable recesses in the crossbar A. The lever F is hinged to the cross-bar A", and connects with the arm g, through which motion is imparted to the adjustable upright lever r, which forms one arm of an angle-shaped casting, whose other arm, s, consists of a slotted foot or plate sliding on thetop of the rakehead, and adjustable in a manner similar to the sliding feet d d', to which reference has already been made, by means of bolts and washers. The object in making the upright lever r adjustable by the means aforesaid, in

`its relation to the top of the rake-head, is to reduce the number of holes in the top of said upright lever, and also in the rear portion of i the arm g, and thus add to the strength of those parts. The lever F, arm g, and upright lever r are all provided with holes, so that their relative position may be changed, when this is found desirable, by means of said holes and the pins t t. This arrangement admits of the further adjustability of the rake-head, and serves, besides, to regulate the leverage, which may be increased or decreased by raising or lowering the arm g at t or at t', or at both these points at the same time. The lever may be kept locked by the driver placing his foot on the projecting pin u, while to unlock it he exerts pressure on the treadle a', or advances the lever by means of the handle y, or by exerting pressure on the handle and treadle simultaneously. When locked, the arm g and that portion of the lever marked F are in line, as shown in Fig. l; but when the joint t of the locking device is elevated by operating upon the lever, moving it in a forward i direction, the wei ght ot' the driver will be poised evenly with that of the rakehead; or, if desired, he can dump the rake by a very slight exertion on the lever F. By the employment of the castings AH in combination with the swinging arms E, the rake head and teeth i may be placed in any desired position relative to the ground operated upon, said adjustabili i l. rlhe castings Aff", riveted to the sides of the frame A supporting the stub-axle, and provided with the ears a and c for supporting the swinging arms E, in which the rake-head D is pivoted, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The rake-tooth h, adjustable in its relation to the upper side of the rake-head by means of the U-shaped curvature 7i, in combination with the bolts and washers t' and staples z, constructed and operating substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

To the above specification of my invention I have signed my name this 19th day of April, 1873, in the presence of two subscribing witllGSSBS.

JOHN H. MEARS. Witnesses:

ARTHUR Evnnnrfr, LYMAN BARNEs. 

